


Didn't Stay for the Coffee

by Kitty_KatAllie



Category: Eyeshield 21
Genre: (tho it's just mentioned he works at a gym no a big point in the story), Bakery & Coffee Shop AU, Barista!Sena, Fluff and Fluff, Love at First Sight, M/M, Personal Trainer!Shin, obligatory coffee shop au, that's all this is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-25
Updated: 2017-07-25
Packaged: 2018-12-06 19:39:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11607591
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitty_KatAllie/pseuds/Kitty_KatAllie
Summary: Shin wasn't the sort of person to believe in magic and fairy tales. Hard work and diligence, not luck, is what got you through life. Things like love at first sight, or doing something you didn't want to, didn't need to, for the sake of someone else were just as likely as magic in his mind. Especially to a man like him. A man who could never remember a face once he looked away. Just what would a man like him fall in love with in one, too quickly forgotten look?Then, he bought the worst thing he'd ever tasted and he had to re-arrange his belief in just what a man like him was capable of feeling.





	Didn't Stay for the Coffee

**Author's Note:**

> So, this was supposed to be for Shin's birthday and I just couldn't fucking get it done. My friend, RoyceClayton, really helped me out, though! We do word wars together and, thanks to that, finally finished this oneshot. Sorry it's late, Shin! (lol) Happy Birthday at last!

 It was just after Valentine’s Day and Tokyo was slow in letting it go. At least it seemed that way to Shin. He used to not even notice this particular holiday; just another square on the calendar to absently strike off. This year, however, his two oldest friends had decided to date _each other_ and Haruto had caught the holiday fever, determined to “do it right”. Whatever that meant. For almost an entire week, all Shin saw and heard was Valentine’s Day. He’d taken to hiding out at the gym long past his working hours with Banba. Shin actually didn’t know if Banba had a significant other, which was a significant _relief_ after Haruto’s hours of excited, but anxious planning. When the day had ended at last, Shin thought his troubles were over.

So while it may have only been the next day, Shin was scowling at every leftover remnant of the sanity-forsaken holiday. It didn’t help Haruto and Ichirou were still extra touchy-feely after the successful celebration the day before; their first big event as a couple and it was as if they had gotten engaged instead of just… doing whatever they did. They weren’t engaged, anyway. In all honesty, they weren’t ostentatiously demonstrative. They were just  _more_ than Shin was used to. The hand holding and lingering touches and high-school-boy-looking smiles at random intervals was so unlike their usual dynamic and Shin felt… felt…?

He snorted softly to himself, barely catching Ichirou’s hand on Haruto’s lower back as he opened the door into their favorite café. He couldn’t believe that he, who was going to turn twenty-two that year, was feeling _left out_ by his friends. He was literally with them at that very moment.

Shaking his head ruefully to clear out the absurdity, Shin followed the new couple to the register, eyes scanning the board above the counter. Although he’d given up sports after an ACL injury a few years ago, he still kept fit with his part-time job at the gym and enjoyed his habitual, carefully balanced diet. So places like this, with a menu filled with sugar-saturated coffee and blended, artificial-syrup-filled drinks, was not one he came to regularly. Shin narrowed his eyes dubiously at the lack of calories listed. Even McDonald’s had calories listed (not that he ever actually _ate_ there). Of course Haruto and Ichirou would like some privately-owned café-cum-bakery. His gaze fell them to the, frankly, massive pastry display, not quite blanching at the sheer scope and selection of the most cholesterol-ridden desserts he’d ever seen. Their “house special” seemed to be a cream puff bigger than Shin’s mouth- it was fluffy and golden and held in a beautiful, white, scallop-edged doily, but it was _huge_.

“Shin, you getting anything?” Haruto asked as he handed over money to the cashier.

Shin jerked his head up and turned, mouth around opening on the word ‘no’, until his eyes met the cashier’s big, brown-eyed glance. There was a smile hovering around the edges of the young man’s mouth and wild, messy brown hair sticking out the top of a black visor. Just over the bill, a strange looking red bat with two, short, curled horns was smoking a cigar. Was that… the logo to this place?

“Good morning, or afternoon? I kinda lost track of time in here- I mean, welcome to A Deimon’s Dozen, where you get your money’s worth or else- ehe, sorry, um, that sounds kinda threatening, but it’s not, really. I think Hiruma-san makes me say because he likes to embarrass me. Suzuna-chan and Monta-kun never say it- ah! D-Do you- um, want anything?” The young man finally bumbled and stuttered into red-faced silence as Shin just stared in shell-shocked silence.

Next to him, Haruto ducked his head, his shoulders jerking weirdly, while Ichirou pressed his glasses up his nose, conveniently covering most of his face with his hand as he did so. But Shin was still staring, tongue-tied and frozen, as the cashier blinked rapidly and slowly burned brighter and brighter red. It made it down to his throat and Shin wondered- inappropriately, wildly- just how far down that blush could travel. He cleared his throat loudly, the sound rattling and snapping in his throat, and making the cashier jump in place.

“I-” he broke off again, eyes darting up to the board and then immediately back to the cashier. Just to be blind-sided all over again, floored anew.

Love at first sight was the stuff of romance novels and poetry, which was where it should stay. Others enjoyed it in movies and dramas, but Shin had never enjoyed that medium and long believed fanciful nonsense such as love at first sight, or soulmates, or blissful happily ever afters, better suited to the written word anyway. Real life was not suited for them. Especially for someone like him.

At least, that’s what he _thought_.

“Excuse him,” Ichirou interrupted at last, dragging the cashier’s bright eyes away. Shin took a quickly aborted step forward, jaw tightening and gaze glued to the side profile now facing him. “He doesn’t normally frequent coffee houses or bakeries-” eyes darted towards him (oh, right, _brown_ they were brown) and glanced up and down Shin’s physique with something that looked like amusement flitting across the cashier’s face “-and doesn’t really know what to order. Maybe just a glass for water? Lemon if you have them. Thank you, Sena-kun.”

Sena? Shin’s eyes dropped to the small badge clipped to the red and black polo poorly concealing a surprisingly toned chest. _Kobayakawa Sena_ was written in a hasty-looking scribble. When Shin looked up, feeling relieved and buoyant as the name rolled through his brain, Kobayakawa was biting his bottom lip. It slipped from between his teeth, shiny and flushed.

“We definitely have lemon, sir,” Kobayakawa offered Shin with a tentative smile from under his visor. “But we sell a lot of really delicious drinks and… uhm, stuff?” he winced awkwardly. “How about a recommendation? I’ve tried everything here. My friends own it!”

Shin nodded once. “Whatever you suggest,” he managed to blurt, arms crossing over his chest a little too tightly. He felt defenseless and off-balance in a way he hadn’t let himself be since he was child. His stomach was jittery, twisting into nauseating knots at the wide, beaming grin that got him.

“Fantastic! You’ll love it, I promise! You don’t really look like a sugary kinda guy, but I don’t wanna stereotype you based on looks. Do you mind sweet things?” Kobayakawa chirped happily, head tilted to the side like a cat’s.

Shin had a weakness for cats. He had “accidentally” adopted 3 of them within a month of getting his own apartment. He fed strays in the street almost every week. And now he had the irresistible urge to pick Kobayakawa up and take him home and feed him like one of his strays. Leading him to completely lose track of the conversation.

“It doesn’t matter,” he grunted, scowling darkly. Haruto and Ichirou choked and coughed at his side, making him glare warningly over at them.

“Eheh, o-okay?” Kobayakawa twittered anxiously, ringing something up. “I’ll give you the special today. It’s a discount, since Valentine’s is over. I really liked the Red Velvet Mocha. I’ll make sure you get that water with lemon, too.” He gave the price and Shin woodenly handed over his cash. Whatever the Red Velvet Mocha was, he was more than happy to pay for it and put an exorbitant amount of yen in the tip jar a second later. Kobayakawa sputtered and protested while also thanking him.

Shin grunted again, quickly stomping away from the adorably flustered cashier… actually, a barista, too. The young man was already at the espresso machine and calling something over his shoulder.

He settled into his seat across from his friends, tense and wary. Haruto’s mouth and shoulders were still twitching and Ichirou was tapping his fingers against his leg where it was lying across his knee.

“So, Red Velvet, huh, Shin?” Haruto managed to force out.

“Why did they name a drink after fabric?” Shin asked with a frown.

Ichirou smirked and shook his head lightly as Haruto snorted loudly behind his fist. “It’s a cake, Shin. You’re ordered a chocolate, milk, and espresso drink with an artificial, red cake flavoring added.”

The horror he felt must’ve shown clear on his face because Haruto burst into gales of laughter at last. His head tipped back and his whole body shook with the guffaws. Even Ichirou couldn’t hold back the soft chuckle.

“Why would anyone do that?” Shin asked, aghast.

“Red Velvet is actually a pretty big favorite, Shin. The cake, anyway,” Haruto replied, wiping at his eyes.

“I’m fairly sure it was chosen for the red theme. For Valentine’s Day,” Ichirou added. Understanding dawned on Shin’s face, but the disgust lingered.

A person moved up to their table, balancing a tray in his hands. He was slender and short, but his shoulders were surprisingly broad. And familiar. He leaned down to set the tray of coffees and the sandwiches the others had ordered onto the short-legged table between them. He straightened again and smiled, and Shin frowned at the almost delicate features- the pointed nose and chin, the big eyes, the small ears hidden under wild brown hair, and thin, arching eyebrows. A nervous smile played on his mouth. Shin scanned the unrecognizable, if beautiful face that had his mouth drying in seconds, before desperately searching and finding the nametag on- yes- Kobayakawa’s chest. His polo shirt stretched over his arms and torso, and his hands fidgeted restlessly in front of him; Shin had never found another person’s body this  _enticing_.

He really needed to stop using ‘never’; he knew better than to use absolute statements. This was definitely proving that old adage completely correct.

“Let me know if you like it. I hope to see you around here soon,” Kobayakawa said cheerfully. His cheeks flamed red, then he ducked his head towards Haruto and Ichirou (reminding Shin of a turtle) and darted away. So quickly the three men were left behind, blinking in surprise.

“Go ahead, Seijuuro. You might as well try it,” Ichirou urged lightly, his amusement still plain in his eyes and his own coffee lifting to his mouth.

Haruto paused blowing on his steaming latte, looking between them in astonishment. “He’s not actually going to- You’re not actually going to?!” Haruto squeaked out the final words.

Shin picked up the cup nonetheless, staring down at the pile of whipped cream liberally sprinkled with white chocolate shavings. Haruto’s jaw dropped. With a slight shrug and pointed eyebrow raise at the blonde, Shin took a sip. It was… _sweet_. Overwhelmingly chocolate-y and… creamy and _sweet_. Some strange taste like chocolate but wasn’t. Crimson stained the lip of the mug as he pulled it away and slowly, carefully set it back on the table as though it were made of glass, or _nails._  Shin barely managed to force it down, the swallow an audible click in his head.

“What. Is. That.”

Haruto and Ichirou burst out laughing together.

* * *

 

 Despite the absolutely horrid taste of that first drink, Shin _kept going back_. Fortunately, Kobayakawa was often at the register, recognizing Shin within seconds of him entering the door (which helped Shin immensely; the few times he didn’t hear Kobayakawa’s cheerful greeting, Shin had promptly turned on his heel and left rather than try to search out a face he couldn’t actually remember). And along with recognizing him, Kobayakawa also remembered his orders and had gotten a lot better at reading Shin’s face. He had started noticing the moment Shin decided he didn’t like the sound, or if it got too far, the taste of something. It usually ended with an ice lemon water or sugarless fruit drink to wash the taste out rather than try something new _again_.

The visits to the coffee shop, at first barely restrained to a weekly occurrence, became twice-weekly. Then, occasionally thrice-weekly, too. By the end of May, after the last of the cherry blossoms had fallen and the weird cherry-flavored _everything_ had disappeared from the racks (and the disgusting matcha-flavor- already popular only to explode everywhere around the same time- had finally sunk back to its customary cakes and drinks). June had been a eclectic mix of tropical flavored everything (he'd _almost_ enjoyed those mango drinks, if it wasn't for the sheer amount of sugar piled in). July was creeping in, the thermostat rising and the humidity with it. Dawns broke earlier, and the nights fell later, which gave Shin even better excuses to linger longer, to get up a little bit earlier to jog past the little shop in the morning and hear Kobayakawa laughing as he swept floors inside or cleaned windows outside on a wobbly ladder.

It was one such morning that brought Shin’s feet outside the little bakery and coffee shop. It was early enough that there were very few cars or bikes driving up and down the street yet, the distant sound of the nearest railway crossing warning pedestrians and cars alike to yield. The sky was empty of even a wisp of cloud, every nook and cranny filled with light that exposed the worst and nicest parts of this corner of Tokyo. Sweat was already sliding down Shin’s temples and the back of his thin, white tee-shirt. He glowered in disapproval as he got closer to the shop. There was that ladder that should've been put in the trash years ago outside the shop and a person perched _ridiculously_ unsafely on its highest rungs. The male person wasn’t balanced very well, knees shaking and feet planted as widely apart as the ladder allowed. It took a moment of eyeing the shape of his narrow hips and surprising broad shoulders straining from his contorted position for Shin to recognize just who was acting so risky, and once he did his glower became downright thunderous.

Kobayakawa was teetering dangerously on the ladder, reaching a little beyond the range of his arm length to water the farthest hanging plant pot. His teeth were caught on his bottom lip and his brows furrowed in an uncharacteristic scowl. One hand was white-knuckling the side of the ladder, but he didn’t stop trying to reach too far. Sunlight gleaming white and bright off the large glass window struck Shin straight in the eyes, forcing him to halt and blink sluggishly, despite his internal mantra to keep moving and not stop. Kobayakwa was a grown man and Shin had no right to interfere-

He fervently thanked what luck he had, if indeed luck existed, because just then, as Shin stopped in his tracks to clear his vision of sunspots, the ladder gave way.

Water cast over their heads in an actual sparkling arc, soaking Shin’s already half-translucent shirt and slicking his hair to his forehead and neck. The ladder clattered and clacked and fell with a tooth-aching crack to the pavement. And Shin’s arms had automatically reached out to catch a slender, hollering barista and pull the much shorter man close against his own chest.

The startled squawk-like shriek cut off mid-breath, and for a long, heart-thumping second Shin was just holding Kobayakawa and Kobayakawa in turn was clutching at Shin’s soaked shirt, breath panting hot and fast against the middle of Shin’s chest.

With another bitten-off squawk, Koabayakawa thrust himself away. His mouth worked uselessly, eyes darting up to Shin’s face and widened comically.

“Sh-Shin-san!” he exclaimed breathlessly.

Shin nodded once, hands tightening and loosening in fist at his sides. If Kobayakawa hadn’t pulled away, how long would he had kept holding on? He bent down to lift the ladder upright, ignoring the barista’s protests, because he just needed to do _something_ with his hands. To hide his face because, for once, he had no idea just what emotion he was feeling, or showing.

“Thank you! I don’t think I would’ve _died_ or anything, but I definitely, probably, would’ve broken _something_ , so thank you. Um… you’re- You caught me right outta the air… you’re even stronger than you look,” Kobayakawa laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. Shin took in the unfamiliar slope of his round cheeks and pointed nose and wondered if the bright red flush was usual.

“I work out.”

Kobayakawa burst into laughter, laughter so hard and loud he almost lost his balance, doubling over his stomach as his red face burned even redder.

Bemused as he was, Shin couldn’t help the tiny corresponding leap in his belly and the twitch at the corner of his mouth. A simple laugh had never felt so infectious.

“Okay then, Mr. LMFAO,” Kobayakawa wheezed, wiping at the corner of his eye with the heel of his hand. “You work out.”

“I… work at a gym. And my name is Shin, Seijuuro. Not… whatever that was,” Shin clarified a moment later.

Kobayakawa nodded, stifling a few snickers as he replied, “Sorry, sorry, it was just a joke. Don’t worry about, Shin-san.”

“You can call me Seijuuro.” He said it on a wild impulse and immediately felt his face pull taut in surprise. Which was nothing on Kobayakawa’s expression.

As if Shin had just slapped him with a wet sock.

“Oh- uhm. I can… are you-” he broke off and twisted the hem of his damp t-shirt in his hands. “You want me to call you…?”

“Yes,” Shin blurted, his chin jerking woodenly into a nod. But it was true. Even as the words tugged out of him unbidden and unplanned, he _did_. His chest felt too tight and his palms clammy, but he wanted to hear Kobayakawa say his name like he… he _knew_ him.

“Ah… thanks. For… for the catching and the name… thing?” Kobayakawa said hesitantly, a smiling growing over his face even as his spoke uncertainly. “I’m Sena. No one ever calls me Kobayakawa, so, um, it’s always a little weird when you do. You can call me Sena, too.”

“Sena.”

Crimson burned from Kobayakawa’s hairline to his collarbones, but he nodded. “Yeah, um. I better… we’re getting ready to open, so.” He trailed off abruptly and shuffled on his feet. “Are you coming in for coffee? I’ll get it right today! For free, too!” he offered quickly, words tumbling out too fast and breathy.

“No, just running. I’ll see you tomorrow, Sena,” Shin said firmly, more to himself than … than to _Sena_. He couldn’t afford to waste even _more_ time to indulge himself (in Sena’s all too intriguing company).

“Okay. Um. Thanks, really, S-Seijuuro,” he muttered. He turned and ran back inside, the door rattling behind him. The watering can and ladder were left incongruously on the pavement.

Shin huffed lightly and resumed jogging, bouncing a little higher for each step.

To get his pace and heart rate back up quickly, not because he felt… _buoyant_ or some silly nonsense like that.

 

The next day, Shin entered the coffee shop feeling awkward. He didn’t do _awkward_. He’d felt out of place before, or stymied by what happened around him. But he never felt _awkward_ , not like this. Like his limbs were too big and heavy for his body. Like his lips and brain felt numb, and his tongue too clumsy to shape sounds into words.

It was just after the morning rush had ended. Most of the tables were still full, but the pick-up line was petering out fast. Shin cleared his throat, reiterating Haruto and Ichirou’s advice in his head. He could do this. He’d never done it before, but that didn’t mean he _couldn’t_. He made his way to the counter, squinting at the barista. Definitely not Sena. Short, slender, and dark-haired, check. But the barista’s hair was all wrong, even the color, and, most obviously, the barista was definitely a _she_

She popped her gum as he stepped up. Thin eyebrows arched up high and big, blue eyes looked him up and down.

“You gotta be _him_ ,” she remarked mysteriously. Shin glared in annoyance.

“Where’s Sena?”

“Dontcha know how to say _please_?” she asked with an innocent batting of her eyelashes and a wicked curve to her mouth.

Shin’s eyes narrowed wordlessly.

“Suze, c’mon, Sena said to tell him if big and scowly showed up,” interrupted an amused voice. A second barista showed up, licking whipped cream off his thumb absently. His dark hair was a mess, and his brows thick and heavy. Like… Suze… and Sena, this guy was short and slender with big hands and a bigger 100-watt grin when he looked up at Shin. “You _are_ big and scowly, aintcha?”

“I… don’t…” Shin tried to reply, utterly lost, while the girl cackled absurdly and the boy snickered.

“Hot tray, guys! Watch out!” chirped out a thankfully familiar voice.

Sena- it could only be Sena, somehow, some _when_ Shin had memorized the dip and curve of his back- slowly walked backwards through the swinging door, a large tray covered in muffins and cookies in his hands. The trays were plastic, but the pastries themselves were still steaming, the scent of them wafting throughout the café the moment Sena appeared. Not a few patrons turned with noses uplifted towards the smell of chocolate, blueberries, and banana.

Sena turned, then froze, eyes on Shin. A smile even bigger, brighter, and more genuine than Shin could imagine lit up his face. “You _did_ come today,” he noted unnecessarily. Shin nodded mutely.

Between them, the two baristas snickered even louder and the guy made some strange smacking and squeaking noise with his mouth. The tray trembled and scarlet bloomed over Sena’s face, making his brown eyes shinier and… browner.

Shin frowned at the stupidity in that descriptor.

“I was wondering when you get off?”

For some reason, the two barista burst into outright laughter, leaning into each other and smothering the noise (poorly) in each other’s shoulders. The pointed glare Sena sent their way was almost _venomous_ , and a whole lot of embarrassed.

“I _clock out-_ ” another glare at his inane colleagues “-at around 3. I work through the lunch rush today,” he explained a little apologetically. His shoulder shrugged upward a bit, his head tilted, and his nose scrunched. An adorable combination that had Shin’s throat drying. “Is there something you needed?”

Shin swallowed hard, trying in vain to wet his throat and tongue before harshly barking, “It’s my birthday.”

Sena blinked incomprehensibly, smiling on autopilot. “Happy birthday!”

“No, that’s not-” Shin broke off again with an irritated ‘tch’.

Sena frowned slightly, the gears whirring behind his eyes. “Did you want a discount? Because we do have a discount! I’m friend with Kurita-kun, the owner, I bet he could whip up your favorite dessert if we don’t have it out today? Not that you order desserts very often…”

“I don’t eat desserts. I don’t drink coffee. At least, none of the flavored, overly sugared ones you’ve made,” Shin blurted almost desperately, dark eyes boring into Sena’s wide, guileless ones.

“Oh.” The amount of hurt in that tiny utterance had Shin closing his eyes on a sigh.

“I mean, I don’t want a discount for something else I won’t drink or eat. I came here- I _come_ here for you.”

“Oh.” This time, Sena said it on an exhale, soft and fascinated as a smile brightened his face.

Much better.

“Will you come and _not drink coffee_ with me at 3?” Shin forced out, hands twitching at his sides.

“Yeah,” Sena said. And his nose scrunched over his smile. People don't _melt_ , but Shin felt too warm and too soft, like one of those muffins Sena still held aloft. “Yeah, I would love to not drink coffee with you.”

Shin let out a heavy sigh of relief, and turned on his heel, ears and neck burning uncomfortably.

“Wait!! Where are you going!?” yelped the male barista.

“What kinda invitation was that?” added the female incredulously.

Shin slammed out the door while Sena laughed in bewilderment, answerless.

 

Shin stood outside the shop a few hours later, jaw tight and gaze hooded.

He’d gotten the yes he’d wanted. He had a _plan_ to follow it up. But for some reason, he still felt unsure. As if the pavement beneath him wasn’t solid and he couldn’t get grounded. Shin wasn’t fond of situations he had no prior experience in, and the uncertainty made him restless and on edge.

The door opened as he stared at the sign overhead. Someone short and slender stopped with a confused, wordless noise just in front of him.

“Shin-san?” asked the person hesitantly.

Shin blinked and pulled himself back to earth. His eyes travelled over the baggy casual clothes, dark jeans and bright red tee, hair untamed and dark brunette, and broad shoulders that pulled red cotton a little tight. A single strap knapsack was lying across his chest. Hands fidgeted in the air and brown eyes flickered over Shin’s face anxiously.

“Sena,” Shin realized with a fissure of pleased confusion running through him. “I thought I was early.”

Sena licked his lips, frowning slightly a moment longer. “You are. But I saw you, and Hiruma-san kicked me out before I got useless. His words! Not mine!” he tacked on with an embarrassed high-pitch to his voice.

Shin looked him over again, enjoying the chance to look as much as he wanted as Sena looked back just as unabashed. Well, maybe not quite as much. His gaze tended to break away, just to dart back haplessly. “I thought you were going to call me Seijuuro?”

Sena chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll try. I, um, I had to make do with what we had, so I hope it’s okay. But, um, happy birthday, again?”

He held out a little box for Shin to take.

Which he did, cautiously.

“You could’ve just told me you didn’t like sweet things, you know,” Sena told him, almost scolding.

Shin snorted and tugged the ribbon undone. “That wasn’t the point of coming here.”

Sena ducked his head, a hand over his mouth, and Shin could just barely make out a blush on the side of his cheek. His mouth quirked up as he finally opened the tiny box.

It looked like it was made out of a two-cup tray and brown paper bags. And lots of tape. In bold marker of various colors was ‘reserved for Shin, coffee not required’ was written over all three sides, in a mishmash of different handwriting. Shin stared at the saddest pile of handicrafts that twenty-year-olds had obviously made during the hours that Shin had spent uselessly prowling around the gym.

“You can, um, come in whenever you want and sit wherever, and you can use this. You don’t… um, need to waste your money as an excuse just to come by and say hi. Not if you don’t want to. I _will_ find you a drink you like one day, though,” Sena informed him stoutly, mouth stubborn and smiling at once.

The silence stretched on for long enough that Sena began to twitch and shuffle again.

“It’s a stupid gift, right? Suzuna and Monta kept laughing at me, but it’s all I could think of, and it’s your birthday, I had to do _something_ ,” he babbled on, hands waving and face red.

Shin swooped down, placed the hand not gently holding his gift on Sena’s shoulder, and pressed a kiss to the corner of Sena’s bitten-red mouth.

“Much better than coffee.”

Sena buried his startled laughter in his fist, but didn’t pull away or punch him- either option applicable for the liberty Shin had just thoughtlessly taken.

He definitely wasn’t _buoyant_ or some nonsense like that, when he steered Sena gently but firmly down the street, his hand still on the Sena’s shoulder.

He definitely was, though.


End file.
